No Death In Love
by OriginalChocobo
Summary: Life can be thought of as a beautiful flower... if it ever gets the chance to bloom. One-shot with a small hint at romance.


**Disclaimer- I own nothing from Enslaved: Odyssey To The West, nor will I ever.**

**(A/N) Boy, this was hard to make. I don't know what it is about Enslaved but it just leaves so many ideas to expand upon that you really don't know what to do. I think it adds to the story if you listen to No Death In Love-Nitin Sawhney while reading it, as you can see by my uncreative title. It inspired me to go with this theme for the fic and I just love the song in general, along with the rest of the soundtrack. Anyway, this is my take on what would eventually happen.**

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_This is it… _she thought, _this… is really the end_.

It somehow felt more peaceful than she imagined. Blood slid through her fingers and pooled around her torso, the shade mirroring her long hair, sprawled out before her, and reflecting the rays of dimming sunlight that managed to puncture the thick canopy. She no longer struggled to focus on the screech of metal in the distance, nor the lush foliage that had suddenly become so still, though she continued to feel the constant breeze.

The scenery began to slowly blur and she instinctively knew that she couldn't be rescued this time. Her consciousness was slipping, so she simply gave in for once and let the image fade in defeated acceptance. Her vision went blank for a moment only to be replaced by vivid mirages that she now knew were her memories. They flashed across her eyes, one bleeding into the next. Mark, her father, her village, the slave ship, Pigsy, Pyramid, Monkey….

She vaguely heard her name being called out from somewhere. Her ears would no longer allow her to decide if it was near or far.

"Trip? Trip!"

She felt the warm, foreign moisture of a tear trailing down her cheek, only to mix with the pool of blood that expanded further and further.

_I'm so sorry Monkey._

Her eyelids fluttered shut and she allowed the darkness to claim her. An odd feeling crept up her spine as if she was actually being consumed but despite the frightful thought, her body and mind commanded her to be patient. She ignored the instincts and gave serious deliberation to remaining the way she was before curiosity gnawed its way through wavering hesitance and she cautiously opened her lids once again.

She found herself in the same position, lying on the ground but surrounding her was a familiar landscape. Towering over her was an enormous tree, encasing clouds of dragonflies. Scarlet poppies bloomed in patches on the bright, green grass and the sky, painted in vibrant swirls of cyan, crimson and orange housed a handful of stars and a moon that hung close to the horizon. The Old City. Bringing herself to her feet, she looked down at her body to see she wasn't stained with blood, dirt, or any wounds. She held her hands in front of her to assess them and unsurely placed them over her midriff. Everything felt real.

"Tripitaka."

Her body stiffened in fear before her eyebrows knitted together as she realized very few people knew her full name and those who did were allies. She snapped around to face the owner of the voice and her jade eyes widened in disbelief.

"Father?"

The man gave her a reassuring grin to confirm her suspicions and her eyes teared up at the sight of him, untouched by the devastation the mechs had spread through her home village.

"Father!" she cried out. She lunged and wrapped her arms around his neck as tight as she could. Her body shuddered as she released sobs she had held back her entire journey, forcing herself to be strong, to be tough. He returned her embrace and quietly stroked her hair, making her feel like the child she longed to be again.

"It's alright, Trip."

She willed herself to take a deep breath and recover from the violent storm of emotions, wiping her eyes.

"I missed you so much! It took so long to find you," her voice wracked with hiccups of staccato breathing.

Then the reality of the situation struck her.

"Why are we here?" she asked pulling away from him.

"This is our home now. You're home," he stepped aside and let her observe.

She raised her fingertips to her mouth and looked on in awe. Standing in front of her was Mark and Pigsy. They were smiling at her with an unmatchable happiness she hadn't seen since she was a small girl. Behind them, stood her entire village rebuilt, unharmed and waiting for her. She let out a peal of tearful laughter and couldn't believe what was happening. This was more of a reward than she could ever ask for. All of her journey's hardships had paid off.

_Monkey…_ the name reverberated through her mind as a wave of emptiness washed over her.

"Well? Aren't you going to come?" Mark asked, pulling Trip from her thoughts.

"Yes. Just one minute," her head lowered as she tried to keep her voice even.

"We'll be waiting," Mark grinned at her and walked back to the humble abodes alongside Pigsy and her father.

She slowly turned, frightened to look up and be met with nothing. She held her breath and lifted her head to see the man whom she had enslaved on their odyssey.

She reached out towards him and exhaled in relief, unsure of how he got here but uncaring nonetheless. It didn't matter as long as he was with her.

"Oh Monkey, I was so scared that y-"

Her heart froze as she saw her fingers go right through his arm. A moment of tortured silence passed before she slowly pulled back from his phantasm, knowing deep down it was too good to be true. Her face read clear anguish as she desperately fought herself to let go of his memory. Trip turned to face her village with her head held high and closed her eyes in a strange aching pain she had never felt before. Her tone was broken, barely a whisper.

"I'll wait for you…"

Monkey's image shattered into millions of tiny dragonflies, sparkling like the stars in the night sky and were carried off by the cool breeze she felt when her life had escaped her. She bit her lip to keep from crying and swore that no matter what happened, she would keep true to that promise.

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**I hope it was understood that this took place _after _Pyramid, which means Monkey's headband is deactivated. Therefore, he'll live on without her.**

**Reviews are appreciated.**


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